Cup dispensers are well known and come in a wide variety of configurations. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,201,869 and 5,199,601 disclose cup dispensers that have enjoyed widespread commercial success, and both of these patents are hereby expressly incorporated by reference into this document.
Prior cup dispensers comprise an elongated hollow housing that holds a stack of nested cups. The cups are fed by gravity or are spring-biased toward an open end of the housing. A cup retainer such as a resilient diaphragm member spans the open end of the housing, and the closed end of the outermost cup (or other cup-shaped article such as an ice-cream cone, french fry container, etc.) projects outwardly through a central aperture defined in the diaphragm.
When a user desires to dispense a single cup, he or she pulls the closed end of the outermost cup so that the diaphragm distends and otherwise deforms to allow passage of the cup through the central aperture. The portion of the diaphragm that defines the periphery of the central aperture engages a rim at the open end of the next cup to be dispensed and prevents same from passing through the aperture.
To provide a cup dispenser that can accommodate and dispense more than a limited range of cup sizes/shapes, it has heretofore been necessary to install different diaphragms that have differently sized central apertures. This is somewhat inconvenient and increases expense in that multiple diaphragms must be manufactured and supplied. Furthermore, for optimal performance, the diaphragms are preferably manufactured from high-quality material that is relatively expensive. Thus, the diaphragm, itself, is a significant contributor to the final cost of the cup dispenser. Also, these prior diaphragms have been fixedly secured to the open end of the housing by means of a clamp ring that engages the periphery of the diaphragm and the open end of the housing with a friction fit. This clamp ring also adds to the expense of the cup dispenser and increases manufacturing complexity.
In light of the foregoing, it has been deemed desirable to develop and provide a new and improved dispenser for cup-shaped articles and an adjustable retainer for same.